1. Field
Example embodiments relate to a tester apparatus, and more particularly, to a field mounting-type test apparatus and method for testing a memory component or a module in an actual PC environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Wafers may be processed into individual chips using a fabrication process and subsequent processes. Electrical, thermal, and functional tests, during or after a packaging operation, may be used to classify the chips as non-defective chips and defective chips. However, such tests do not guarantee that a non-defective chip installed in a device, for example, a PC or a customer end (CE) device, will function properly.
Automation test equipment (ATE) is used as test equipment. ATE may be used to detect logical and/or parametric failures. ATE, however, is not reliable in terms of rapidly and easily detecting failures in actual operating environments. Therefore, even if a memory chip is tested by ATE, the memory chip may still fail in actual use. Logical failures may include opens/shorts and hard/soft failures, and parametric failures may include lcc, leakage current, setup/hold time, voltage and refresh failures.
Mounting tests have recently been introduced to determine whether a tested component or module will operate properly in an actual PC environment. In general, a memory module refers to an entire circuit board including the memory devices storing a desired capacity of data and a component refers to an individual memory device, for example, a memory integrated circuit (IC). Mounting tests may be classified into memory module mounting tests and component mounting tests.
In the mounting test, a test condition including a mounting environment may be simulated so that a memory device is tested under the test condition. The mounting test may be performed by a behavioral test technique (BTT) tester. However, a PC motherboard on which a chip is mounted is required for the BTT tester during the mounting test. Even when test logic is repeatedly experimented with, a PC motherboard is required. In addition, because only a logic value of a logic pattern testing a memory, e.g., a device under test (DUT), is captured and transmitted to the BTT tester so that a mounting environment is simulated, the mounting environment is restrictively simulated.
In the BTT tester, because a test is not performed on a single kind of PC motherboard due to the characteristic of test, various kinds of PC mother boards need to be prepared. In addition, even if the test is performed on the same kinds of PC motherboards, when chipsets of the PC motherboards are changed or are different, the PC motherboard needs to be newly prepared every time.
In addition, a reference memory for comparison with logic data used in order to check whether a DUT operates needs to be installed in a bus capture board disposed on a PC motherboard. The reference memory requires a memory having capacity equal to or greater than that of a DUT to be tested.